Freight, such as retail, commercial and industrial goods, is frequently stored and moved on pallets. Pallet jacks allow an operator to lift and move these pallets. Such pallet jacks are widely used in the manufacturing, warehousing, transportation, and retail industries. A pallet jack may be rolled under a pallet, and the pallet lifted off the floor. Once off the floor, the load may be rolled to a desired location. Pallet jacks that are powered (e.g., motorized) and manual (e.g., hand operated) are widely used.
Known motorized pallet jacks are generally larger than manually powered pallet jacks. They also provide considerably more torque, which can move heavier loads than can be safely moved by a person manually pushing a hand-operated pallet jacks. However, they are also more expensive than hand-operated jacks and require hours-long battery recharge periods.
In contrast, manually powered pallet jacks are compact, lightweight and inexpensive. They are also more readily available—with less maintenance and no recharge periods. They are commonly used aboard trucks for these reasons. However, moving heavy loads with manually powered pallet jacks may be difficult, and even strong users may struggle, particularly on uneven and/or inclined surfaces.